The Hindu : BJP trying to spoil Sankeshwar's party?

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Sunday, Jun 15, 2003

Southern States

Southern States - Karnataka

BJP trying to spoil Sankeshwar's party?

By Our Special Correspondent

HUBLI June 14. Why is the BJP delaying action on the letters written by Vijay Sankeshwar, MP, announcing his resignation from the party and the Lok Sabha?

Mr. Sankeshwar wrote to the President of the BJP State unit, Basavaraj Patil Sedam, initially and later followed it up with separate letters to the Prime Minister, A.B. Vajpayee, and the national party President, M. Venkaiah Naidu.

After waiting in vain for the Prime Minister and party President to act, Mr. Sankeshwar has now sent his resignation to the Lok Sabha Speaker, Manohar Joshi, in the prescribed format.

The delay in accepting Mr. Sankeshwar's resignation has assumed significance in the context of his decision to float a regional party in the State to fight the forthcoming parliamentary and Assembly elections. Mr. Sankeshwar may face a technical problem in giving a declaration that he is not attached to any political party to the Election Commission for registering the new party.

Sources close to Mr. Sankeshwar maintain that the delay is deliberate and designed to prevent Mr. Sankeshwar making any declaration before the Election Commission. This attitude, it is said, is in tune with the policy the party has adopted towards those who have left the party.

"Their purpose is to cause as much delay as possible and try to subvert plans for the new party taking shape. We also do not rule out the BJP pulling strings in New Delhi to cause some more delay, but we are prepared with our contingency plans," the sources said.

Meanwhile, the circumstances under which an apolitical personality like Mr. Sankeshwar developed political ambitions to the extent of floating a new regional party to fight the Congress continue to remain a mystery. Independent political observers are unable to provide any rational explanation for Mr. Sankeshwar's surprise announcement. Political pique for not being rewarded as a three-time MP can be ruled out, for he was offered the post of Cabinet minister, which he turned down.

Or has it got anything to do with the State unit of the BJP, where things are said to be going from bad to worse, about which Mr. Sankeshwar even apprised the national leadership. The party offered to make him President of the State unit, but he refused the offer. Had Mr. Sankeshwar accepted, he would have become party President before Mr. Sedam.

It is now an open secret that much of Mr. Sankeshwar's unhappiness with the party and its affairs revolve round the role of Ananth Kumar, Union Minister for Urban Development, and the attitude of servility that the latter expects from the people around him.

The best course for Mr. Sankeshwar under the circumstances would have been to bid goodbye and devote his time and energy to his transport and publishing businesses.

Mr. Sankeshwar denied in a chat with this correspondent that he was acting in league with someone else. "It is my own decision. There is now a political vacuum in Karnataka. The need of the hour is for a regional party to safeguard the State's interests. The major political parties have failed. That's why I have ventured out."

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